A US woman who shot and killed her husband and two adult children before taking her own life is thought to have committed the shocking crime as a result of being ostracised from the religion she was raised in.

A federal judge sentenced a former Arkansas judge Wednesday to five years in prison — a stiffer punishment than prosecutors recommended — after he admitted giving young male defendants lighter sentences in return for personal benefits that included sexual favours.

Every time I tell a mate I’m doing a story on cryptocurrency, they invariably ask me the same two questions: should they invest their own hard-earned money, and which cryptocurrency will get them a Lamborghini/yacht/island quickest?

In a 60 Minutes online exclusive, reporter Liz Hayes quizzed Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull on his relationship with the unpredictable Twitter aficionado and US president Donald Trump ahead of their meeting at the White House Friday.

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Mr Abbott said it was wrong to engage in recriminations, lay blame or peddle false hope about Holden.

"The important thing now is to build the kind of economy that will create the jobs of the future in successful, competitive, world-leading businesses and that is why the government is so determined to get taxes down and regulation down," he said.

Industry Minister Ian Macfarlane said he had hoped Holden could hold off its decision until a Productivity Commission report was completed in early 2014, so the government could consider a new car industry policy.

Mr Abbott said that once companies decided their operations were not going to be viable for the long-term "it's very hard to hold them".